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December 14, 2015

2 Reasons for Patience During Trials

See if this
lament sounds familiar: I’m tired of fighting so many battles. Every day drones
on and on in the same manner. I have to ask myself what the reason is for the constant struggle. For me, the answer
is always the same: I am getting an
advanced degree in humility and patience. Lately, my new aura of gentleness is
overwhelming.

My other
response from deep within myself is that I must go through it to get to the
other side. In other words, what is
happening to me now is preparing me for a huge breakthrough—the biggest of
my life.

Endings are Actually new Beginnings.

The last
thing people that are going through traumatic life-changing events want to hear
is, “There’s a reason for everything.” I certainly do not wish to diminish the
horrendous life-changing trials that some of us go through, such as: the death
of a loved one, chronic illness, or serious injury. It is nearly impossible to
look beyond the current trauma of these situations, as I know well. However, certain
common problems can often be opportunities in disguise:

That traffic jam may save us from getting in
an automobile accident further up the road.

The
boyfriend who leaves may open the way for a more loving, kind relationship.

We find a
higher-paying job than the one from which we just got laid off.

There really is usually a hidden motive for much
of what happens to us. Maybe we just aren’t aware of it yet. The closing of a door usually leads to an
open window somewhere. That’s not merely a cliché from The Sound of Music; it’s absolutely true!

We are given
what we need at the time we require it; no more, no less. It’s no fun not
having our desires immediately satisfied. However, there’s a method behind the
madness.

We may not Know What we Truly Need.

Joyce Meyer,
world renowned Bible teacher, gives a humorous extended analogy in which the
parts of the body cooperate because of jealousy. I’ll try to loosely summarize
it:

The eye is
jealous of the hand because it gets to wear pretty jewelry. Doesn’t it deserve
to wear some sort of ring?

The hand is
tired of helping the foot put comfortable shoes on. It wants footwear, too.

The nose has
a hankering to actually be able to see the ring on the hand. It wouldn’t mind
wearing the shoe, either.

(This is my
own addition.) The body parts get together and form a union. They are going to
strike unless they receive their desires immediately. Of course, the host person,
the one with the bigger picture, is fully aware that fulfilling the body parts’
desires is counterproductive. She keeps the status quo despite noisy protests
from every section of her body.

It’s an
amusing illustration. On the other hand, it presents a realistic theme: Sometimes, we don’t know what’s good for us. We cannot see the big picture. If something
is denied to us, the reason is often practical:

It wouldn’t
be good for us.

Something
better is coming.

Going
through it will strengthen us.

Becky

She’s a
friend who visited me at my house the other day. She was accompanied by her
toddler daughter, Anna. The baby is almost to the crawling stage. My house is
not baby proof. The little tyke was scooting around my living room crinkling
papers, trying to put everything in her mouth, and attempting to go down
stairs.

Anna
probably wasn’t happy to be stopped from doing as she pleased at that moment.
However, her mother and I knew what was necessary. Therefore, we prevented her
from harming herself. Papers shouldn’t be wrinkled. Anna is not ready to
negotiate stairs alone safely. Also, many objects are not safe to ingest.

Becky and I
knew what was good for Anna; she didn’t. The toddler was incapable of analyzing
the consequences of her rash actions. After all, she’s only a baby! We stopped
Anna from moving forward for a good reason: it would have been dangerous.